Marijuana (or Sante Maria, as the plant spirit is often referred to) has been used as a sacrament, a medicine, and in many other intentional capacities as a means to expand consciousness and also to connect us more to 'feminine-yin' aspects of our nature, including intuition, creativity and the mystical.

I myself did not for a long time know of the sacredness of marijuana or any plant medicines for that matter, a relic of indigenous genocide; of almost all human lines at this point in our evolution being cut off from their ancestral earth wisdom traditions. It wasn't until I studied of another traditional culture, namely Chinese Medicine, that I first began to apprehend the remarkable power of herbs and plants for the healing of humanity. It was in the midst of my studies that a mentor also brought to my attention the detrimental affects that any herb can have when used without moderation or intention and, specifically, such ill effects as it pertains to the pervasively casual marijuana usage in modern culture. Awoken into my own shadowy/unconscious patterns of use, I decided steadfastly to stop my use of marijuana immediately and indefinitely...

It was over a year later that I decided to use marijuana again. At that time, I felt utterly liberated from any behavioural tendencies of the past and was open to re-conditioning myself with more ethical neural pathways that would allow me to use marijuana differently. I was moved now into the sacredness of plants and approached marijuana in a consecrated manner: if I was going to now work with 'her' (as I acknowledged her now through study as a connector to Mother Earth's intelligence) I would only do so in such a conscious way and, thus, as primarily a medicine.

That night also happened to be January 1st and I was about to do a visioning practice. After connecting to Marijuana through smoking, I found myself whirling in a powerful intuitive stream of consciousness and created a word document titled simply the number of the year and fell into pages of inspired ideas, many of which I put into action successfully. I also found myself falling into meditations when paranoia or anxiety emerged, encounters I formerly called negative side-effects that I had battled for a long while, now seen as potential 'shadow-work'. I discovered the plant was shining a light into deep, deep recesses of my neuro-chemistry--'my stories'--giving me the opportunity through initiating 'Witness Awareness' to create space and observe the landscape of my psyche with a constructively critical Eye. (Sometimes the 'stories' that we unravel are not so real and, thus, often paranoia is revealed to be based on illusion too, notions that truly require a mutual discipline and experience of 'Witness' practices to be able to correctly disassociate from such stories, while making sure that one's intent to disassociate is also not a form of repression or denial. )

So powerful was this experience that my use of marijuana was forever altered. For the next year in fact I only used her once a month on average. Each experience was wonderfully precious, informative and transformational.

As time went on, I grew away from simply once a month partaking and found myself more flowing into what seemed to work more spontaneously. There were months at a time when I even fully abstained, and then other periods where it would heighten to every day for a week perhaps in a period of intense creative output. I always kept in my awareness the conscientious chiding of my mentor, that Marijuana did tax the Liver Meridian and Liver organ, which is why visionary powers are amplified. But imbalanced use can stultify that same creative potential as all in nature needs time to rest and regenerate, Livers and meridians too ;)

Artists have long had a passionate relationship with Sante Maria-Marijuana. She confides in them the mysticism of creativity that I believe all artists adore as the nectar of their inspired world. Musicians are perhaps one of the most enduring and ardent of Her suitors and I wonder at the whole pantheon of albums and pieces of music that have Her as silent collaborator. As a spiritualist, I know as well endearingly of the hash-eating Sufis, the Indian yogis of ancient lineage dancing with Goddess through Her fancies, the Rastas and several others I am sure.

My Druid Medicine Ganja Sound Journeys are a public invitation to come into sacred intention with the use of this wonderful plant. In these offerings, I facilitate a ritual atmosphere where we partake of Her for the benefit of our souls and the world. I then move into a channeling state where I allow the free-flow of mystical music and lyrical transmissions, spiritual teachings, guided meditations and chants. I bring a diversity of instruments to evoke a sacred atmosphere, from quartz crystal singing bowls, to magical reverb guitar, Indian tanpura, lyre-harp, perhaps even the ancient Pythagorean monochord. Ultimately, the music becomes a means of journey for myself and those attending, inspiring us through harmony and vibration. The words, teachings and guidance that come through also take on a brilliant dimension, converging with the music to direct us into soul-travels, humour and levity and, ultimately, sweet textures of liberty. It reclaims something, I believe, that is deep and needed--the intentional and reverential use of plants and music to connect us to mystical realms; places we're actually starving to feel as they nourish the essential energy of Soul.

When Lu & Joey offered to give me a home for this novel adventure, I didn't truly know what to expect. But soon it'll mark a year of almost every month taking this journey and many have come to joyfully drink of it at The House of Yoga. Come and find the magic inside of you or simply dance a little or even a lot more with it if you're a finder on that day or all days. Allow me to bless us with the muses arts and bring forth, if heart is humble, the secret truths of beauty by the muses own decree. And let us re-member the wisdom of the Earth spoken by the angelic alliance of the plant kingdom, interconnecting with the wider-wild family of life!